


Service Dogs for Superheroes (SDfSH): T'Challa and Ubunye

by literally_no_idea



Series: Service Dogs for Superheroes (SDfSH) Main Series [33]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Don't copy to another site, Gen, SDfSH 'verse, Service Animals, Service Dogs, Shuri (Marvel) Is a Good Bro, T'Challa (Marvel) Feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-11
Updated: 2019-04-11
Packaged: 2020-01-11 20:33:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18431579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literally_no_idea/pseuds/literally_no_idea
Summary: The conference continues, and T’Chaka stands at the podium to speak. T’Challa listens, but focuses more of his attention on the room and its occupants, tracking everything as best as he can. He’s so focused on the people in the room that it takes a moment before he realizes what’s about to happen, and by the time he’s started to move, it’s already too late.





	Service Dogs for Superheroes (SDfSH): T'Challa and Ubunye

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome back to the series, or if you're new here, welcome! This part is about T'Challa and Ubunye. Enjoy!

_ The conference continues, and T’Chaka stands at the podium to speak. T’Challa listens, but focuses more of his attention on the room and its occupants, tracking everything as best as he can. He’s so focused on the people in the room that it takes a moment before he realizes what’s about to happen, and by the time he’s started to move, it’s already too late. _

 

_ He’s holding his father, watching him die, as everything falls apart around them. He sees the light fade from his father’s eyes, and T’Challa feels lost. He knows that his father believes that he’s now in a beautiful afterlife, but for himself? T’Challa doesn’t know what he believes. _

 

_ He hopes his father is right, but he doesn’t know, and that’s terrifying, because what if T’Chaka is wrong, and he’ll never see his father again, and this was it, his father died knowing that T’Challa hadn’t saved him, hadn’t protected him. _

 

T’Challa wakes with a start, sitting up in his bed in Wakanda, chest heaving as he scans the room. Everything is the same as it should be, but one of the royal panthers, Ubunye, is sitting at the foot of his bed, looking at him with piercing yellow eyes. T’Challa tilts his head, looking back at the panther.

 

“You shouldn’t be in here,” he tells Ubunye in Wakandan. The panther stares back at him, then turns and slinks out of the room, resuming his post with the other panther outside the door.

 

T’Challa watches him go, then lays back down in bed in the hopes of falling asleep. Sleep doesn’t come, and T’Challa sighs, standing and pulling a robe on over his pajamas, wandering down to Shuri’s workshop to see if she’s there.

 

She is, working on some new technology for the outreach centers they’ve established around the globe, and she doesn’t even look up when T’Challa comes in.

 

“Nightmares again?” she asks, and T’Challa hums in agreement, standing behind her to watch her work.

 

“Again. Shouldn’t they be gone by now?”

 

Shuri shrugs. “It’s different for everyone. I still don’t have a quick solution for PTSD or nightmares, brother. That hasn’t changed.”

 

“I know. I didn’t come to ask about that, I just came because it’s interesting, watching you work. When you’re not messing with me, of course.”

 

“But what’s the fun of creating things if I can’t yeet you across the room every now and then?” Shuri asks, saving her designs for now and turning to face him.

 

T’Challa shakes his head. “You don’t need to ‘yeet’ me across rooms to enjoy inventing new things,” he points out.

 

“Yeah, but it’s a nice added bonus.” Shuri heads for one of the tables nearby that’s covered in different gadgets. “Come here, I’ve got some new things for you to try.”

 

T’Challa narrows his eyes, suspicious, but he follows her over anyway.

 

* * *

 

Three days later, T’Challa has nightmares again. This time, he dreams about the first fight with Killmonger, about falling down the waterfall into pitch black.

 

_ He’s dead, but not fully, and as a result, he isn’t in the beyond, isn’t with his father and his ancestors. _

 

_ Instead, he’s in empty, dark space, and no matter where he goes, he can’t see anything, can’t hear or feel or taste anything, but he can smell blood, and he can’t tell where the injuries are, can’t figure out what’s happened, or where he is, or what he’s supposed to do. He starts screaming into the darkness, in the hopes that someone, anyone, will hear him, will help him. _

 

T’Challa wakes up to someone screaming, and it takes him a minute to realize that he’s the one screaming. He stops, but he’s still panicked, still can’t shake the tight, uncomfortable feeling in his chest.

 

He looks around the room, and spots Ubunye at the foot of the bed again. “What?” he asks the panther, and Ubunye looks at him for a moment before hopping up onto the bed, landing lightly beside T’Challa, and then curls up to lay in T’Challa’s lap.

 

Startled, T’Challa immediately lifts his arms up, then slowly lowers them, placing both hands on Ubunye’s back and petting him.

 

Ubunye purrs, rolling over so T’Challa can rub his belly, and T’Challa obliges, petting the large cat until he starts to yawn again and falls back asleep.

 

* * *

 

Ubunye becomes a constant in T’Challa’s life; T’Challa has nightmares, wakes up, and finds Ubunye waiting to help him. He becomes more and more accepting of the panther’s help, and it causes a change in T’Challa, because Shuri asks him about it over breakfast one morning.

 

“Are your nightmares gone?” she asks, and T’Challa shakes his head.

 

“No, Ubunye’s been helping me through them.”

 

Shuri gives him a weird look. “Are you saying that one of the royal panthers is, what, royalty by day, service animal by night?” She pauses. “Actually, I guess that makes sense, that’s kind of what you are, right?”

 

She starts laughing, and T’Challa rolls his eyes, because it’s a good thing for Shuri’s sake that their mother is busy in a meeting and couldn’t join them for breakfast.

 

“Yeah, yeah. Very funny,” he says. “But maybe you’re onto something. Maybe he could be something like that.”

 

Shuri gathers up her dirty dishes, shrugging. “I don't know, but if you want him to be a service animal, you might need to start working on that now, because you’re going to the US soon, aren’t you? Can you take him there?”

 

T’Challa frowns. “You’re right, and I don’t know. I’ll ask Stark.”

 

* * *

 

**From:** T’Challa (tchalla@wakanda.gov)

**To:** Tony Stark (iamironman@starkunlimited.com)

**Subject:** US Service Animal Laws?

 

Mr. Stark,

 

I have a trip scheduled soon to meet with the Avengers team and other heroes in New York in three months. One of the royal panthers, Ubunye, appears to be taking on the roll of some kind of service animal for me. Can he accompany me? Will this be a problem?

 

King T'Challa.

 

**From:** Tony Stark (iamironman@starkunlimited.com)

**To:** T’Challa (tchalla@wakanda.gov)

**Subject:** RE: US Service Animal Laws?

 

T’Challa,

 

why are you so formal all the time? King of Wakanda, right, I get it, but like, we’re friends, right? it’s all good, no need for all that. anyway, the laws say only dogs and sometimes miniature horses, but I’m pretty sure Shuri can figure something out to make that happen. otherwise, I think you’d be better off asking Natasha, she’s the better service animal trainer. I’ll let her know you’re asking, she’ll message you. I'd give you her number or email myself, but I don’t want to die anytime soon. I’m sure she’ll be in touch though.

 

With love,

 

Tony :D

 

* * *

 

T’Challa gets a text an hour after Tony’s email comes through. He’s waiting outside Shuri’s workshop while she tests different ideas for cloaking Ubunye to take on the appearance of a dog while they’re in the US.

 

**Unknown Number:** T’Challa, I heard you’re looking to make one of your panthers a service animal. -Natasha

 

**T’Challa:** Yes, that would be the goal.

 

**Natasha:** It takes a lot of work, and I’ll be quite honest, I’ve never worked with a panther before, let alone trained one as a service animal. But I don’t doubt it can be done. Are you hoping to bring this panther in public with you on your trip?

 

**T’Challa:** Potentially, depending on whether that would be reasonable to do. Would that cause any disturbance in public?

 

**Natasha:** No, not anymore than the rest of us. But if you want to do that, you’re going to need your panther trained ahead of time. Can you fly out here between now and then, and will your panther adjust to the new environment well, or would they do better training in Wakanda?

 

**T’Challa:** They should be fine anywhere, and that might be best, for them to get adjusted to the US before going in public for the first time.

 

**Natasha:** Great. Get them ready to go and fly out when you’re ready. We’re still here at the tower.

 

T’Challa puts his phone away, going into the workshop to talk to Shuri.

 

* * *

 

Shuri has a solution for T’Challa by breakfast the next morning, and she stumbles into the kitchen, yawning and rubbing at her eyes, holding a small square device, about the size of a dog tag.

 

“Did you not sleep last night?” Ramonda asks, and Shuri shakes her head, pouring herself a cup of coffee that she dumps two shots of espresso into.

 

“This was important to T’Challa,” she says, sliding the square device across the table to T’Challa as she sits down. “There you go. It’s a camouflaging device, it should make Ubunye look like a Belgian Tervuren dog, which is similar enough to a black panther that the device won’t have to work as hard to maintain the camouflage, just to be sure. Test it before you leave, but it should work. You can just put it on his head and push the center of it twice. Oh, or you can clip it to a collar so it’ll just look like a dog tag, and then just take it off when you no longer need him to look like a dog.”

 

T’Challa picks the tag up, turning it over in his hands. “Thank you, Shuri.”

 

She shrugs. “He helps you. That’s what matters. Now go, check that it works and then go meet Natasha at the tower so you can train together. She’s a brilliant woman, but training is still going to take time.”

 

T’Challa finishes the rest of his food, rinses off his dishes, and then heads out to find Ubunye. The camouflaging device works perfectly, and Ubunye doesn’t even seem to notice the difference, so T’Challa texts Shuri a picture of him as a dog, then deactivates the device and takes Ubunye to gather their stuff and get on one of the ships headed to the US.

 

* * *

 

In the US, Natasha and Tony meet T’Challa and Ubunye on the roof as they get off the ship, both of them accompanied by their service dogs. Both dogs stay at their handlers’ sides, but they’re clearly interested in meeting Ubunye, and once the ship has taken off again and they can all hear each other properly, T’Challa steps forward to greet them.

 

“Thank you for helping me with this,” he says, and Natasha smiles.

 

“It would be very hypocritical if we didn’t. Besides, you’re a friend. We’ll always help in anyway that we can. Not that Wakanda really needs our help.”

 

Tony nods. “Definitely. You all have way better tech than I can even begin to imagine. And you’re a lot better people in general, too. Can the animals all introduce themselves?”

 

T’Challa agrees, and both handlers allow the dogs to greet Ubunye, the three animals circling and sniffing each other for a few minutes before going back to their respective handlers.

 

Tony leaves, talking about some new suit idea he’s working on, and Natasha and T’Challa are left behind, and Natasha turns to him.

 

“Ready to start training today, or do you want a day to relax first?”

 

T’Challa thinks about it for a moment. “Can we watch how some of the service dogs work first?”

 

Natasha nods. “Sure. There’s a lot of us at this point, so you’ll have plenty of examples. Follow me, there’s an extra personal floor Tony had made in case you wanted it, we can drop your things off there, and then we can go to the communal floor, I’m pretty sure they’re having a Harry Potter marathon because Bucky, Steve, and Luke haven’t seen all the movies yet.”

 

They get T’Challa’s things put away and then head to the communal floor, where they find just about everyone they know gathered: Loki, the full Avengers team, including Rhodey, Sam, Stephen, and Thor, and the “streets team,” as Tony’s taking to calling them, or Jessica, Frank, Matt, Danny, Luke, Peter, and Wade. Tony’s sitting there too, and when Natasha frowns at him, he shrugs.

 

“Bucky said, and I quote, ‘get your ass up here, even my arm doesn’t need any upgrades right now so if you don’t leave the workshop I’m dragging you out by my high-tech prosthetic.’ He made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.”

 

Natasha laughs. “Fair enough. Folks, do we want a quick animal introduction before we carry on?”

 

Sam pauses the movie, and everyone sends their service animals over to meet Ubunye, and there’s a few minutes of confusion as they all greet each other, which gets even more confusing for a moment when Aelfhun takes the opportunity to shapeshift into a black panther to match Ubunye, and even T’Challa takes a surprised step back.

 

“Is that normal?” he asks, and Loki raises a hand.

 

“That would be mine. Sorry, they still haven’t quite learned the manners to ask before doing that when we’re in the tower.”

 

T’Challa nods slowly. “Okay. All manners have to be learned somewhere, I suppose. Can they change back?”

 

Loki calls Aelfhun, says something in Asgardian, and the shapeshifter returns to the form of the Saluki it had been in previously.

 

With the animals all introduced, Natasha and T’Challa settle in on the floor, Natasha between Luke and Bruce and T’Challa between Jessica and Peter, and Sam starts the movie, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, up again.

 

* * *

 

Natasha, T’Challa, and Ubunye start training the next day, and they start with just basic leash manners.

 

“I’m sure he already has basic and advanced obedience down, as a royal panther, but he might need to be on leash while in public,” Natasha explains, fitting Ubunye with a dark purple biothane collar Tony had made for him last night.

 

It takes a moment for Ubunye to adjust to having the leash dangling between him and T’Challa, but once he’s adjusted to that, he heels just as well as he does off leash, and Natasha starts to work with them on tasks, adapting things as they go based on T’Challa’s needs.

 

Training doesn’t take long at all; as it turns out, with Ubunye already trained in advanced obedience, task training only takes a month and a half, even with practicing both with and without the camouflaging device, which, in a way that even Tony can’t explain, is somehow capable of also adjusting for the vest Tony makes for Ubunye, changing Ubunye’s appearance to include both the vest and the collar Ubunye wears, making both look the same but in a size that’s perfectly proportionate with Ubunye’s dog form.

 

* * *

 

The biggest problems T’Challa seems to encounter are when people in public don’t recognize him. He doesn’t mind, honestly, and in fact he prefers not to be recognized, but it does cause more problems than it solves when he gets stopped by businesses and police alike.

 

The worst service animal related situation he experienced was with a police officer who hadn’t recognized him, and had decided that T’Challa was up to no good while in a Target. In reality, T’Challa was there to get cream cheese and raspberries, because according to Sam, he needed them for a cookie recipe he wanted to make for T’Challa to take back to Wakanda that he said was “the best cookie you’ll ever have in your entire life, I guaran-fucking-tee it.”

 

The police officer, however, had decided that T’Challa was, according to his report later, “probably going to rob the cashier,” and he had put his hand on his gun, telling T’Challa to freeze and put his hands on his head.

 

Slightly exasperated, T’Challa had done so, but in the process had forgotten about the leash attached to his wrist, and while raising his hands Ubunye’s collar had slid over the panther’s head, fastened too loose on their way out the door. When the collar slid off, the camouflaging device came with it, and then Ubunye was standing in full panther form beside T’Challa.

 

The police officer, panicked and not thinking clearly, had immediately drawn his gun on Ubunye, and T’Challa had been forced to jump in front of the panther, his suit assembling around him just in time to deflect the bullets.

 

T’Challa had slid the collar back on while he was still blocking the officer’s view, and when he stood back up to face the police officer, Ubunye was once again in dog form, and the officer, now realizing who was in front of him, had hastily apologized, leaving embarrassed, and T’Challa had just paid for the two things he came for and gone back to the tower.

 

It was in the news later, and Sam had looked he was going to have a panic attack about T’Challa almost having died trying to get him his ingredients. T’Challa had reassured him that it was no big deal, and besides, Sam was right, these cookies were definitely worth dying for.

**Author's Note:**

> Service dog facts of the day:
> 
> -Since we have T'Challa almost being (wrongfully) arrested at the end of this story, I'd like to talk about what happens if someone with a service animal is arrested or if they go to an inpatient health facility, like a mental hospital, and also just some general disability-related notes about both of these situations.
> 
> -Okay, so this kind of thing gets tricky; which is a nice way of saying that disabled prisoners or disabled people in locked psychiatric facilities have less-than-certain rights. In publicly-owned prisons, the Rehabilitation Act applies to federal prisons or prisons that receive federal funding, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to state and local prisons. Both act pretty much the same way, and are fairly interchangeable.
> 
> -The Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the US Constitution also have some influence in helping to ensure the rights of prisoners that have been treated unfairly in general, and can help disabled prisoners file lawsuits for discrimination.
> 
> -Now here's the thing; that's for publicly-owned prisons, and does not apply to privately-owned prisons. So, because the ADA and Rehabilitation Act apply to public and/or government institutions only, private prisons can basically do whatever they want, and there's not a whole lot you can do to argue it.
> 
> -This is similar to private schools, where they can change the curriculum however they want (such as including religion classes) and discriminate in whatever ways they want, essentially. (I grew up Catholic and spent ten years in Catholic school, with my last year being the year that they tried to stop me from being transgender. You could say I'm still a little bitter, but that would be an understatement.)
> 
> -Anyway, so private prisons don't fall under the ADA or Rehabilitation Act. This means that they can essentially openly discriminate, and there's not a lot you can do about it. They can just outright deny you the right to have your service animal with you. You might be able to sue them, but honestly things get really difficult when it comes to privately owned establishments.
> 
> -Now, for other prisons: it's about a 50/50 split, in terms of service animals being allowed to accompany their disabled incarcerated handler. Court cases have fallen on both sides of this argument, with some judges ruling that the disabled person should be allowed to have their service animal with them, and some judges ruling that the prison does not have to allow the service animal.
> 
> -As long as the prison provides "reasonable accommodation" in some other way, they don't have to allow the service animal, necessarily. Now, does "reasonable accommodation" mean they actually treat the disabled person with respect and give them the full range of resources they need to have a quality of life equal to other prisoners? Not necessarily.
> 
> -On the topic of "reasonable accommodation" and prison/jail practices: I happen to know someone who works in a local jail, and they've told me that there's an entire unit just for people with mental illnesses and other disabilities. But they also don't actually get the help they truly need, and sometimes accommodations are inadequate. But the system just ignores that, so these people suffer in silence.
> 
> -As for locked psychiatric inpatient facilities, once again, it's tricky; technically, because the public can't go there, they aren't a public access facility, so they don't have to permit a service animal, and they can also claim that having the animal there would be dangerous or "alter the fundamental nature of the business," and they can leave it at that.
> 
> -Honestly, there needs to be more specific provisions for prisons/locked inpatient facilities/etc, because there's waaay to much gray area.
> 
> With all of that said (and because I'm running out of space here, whoops), if you want to see drabbles or notes related to this series or want to talk to me about this series or anything else, you can find me on tumblr [ here ](https://servicedogsforsuperheroes.tumblr.com/)
> 
> The next story will introduce our final service animal handler, and then I've got some fun end-of-series stories for you all that will wrap up the main series! We're nearing the end now, and I can't wait to share what I have written with you all.
> 
> As always, thank you so much for reading!


End file.
